


The Duel

by Vandrerska



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: (They just can't help it), A little bit of angst, Alternate Universe, And an awful lot of bantering, Fluff, GGAD are professors at Hogwarts, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-19
Updated: 2020-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-24 15:35:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21860281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vandrerska/pseuds/Vandrerska
Summary: Albus groaned. On the long list of horrible mistakes he’d made in his life, agreeing to duel with Gellert Grindelwald in the Great Hall on Christmas Eve in front of the whole school definitely stood in the top three.
Relationships: Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald
Comments: 34
Kudos: 118





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BlueAlmond](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueAlmond/gifts).



> Hi there!
> 
> This is my first ever fanfic. It's not betaed and I should warn you that English is not my first language.  
> (Perhaps I should've used the 'Graphic Violence' warning tag, for potential major assault on the English language :-)
> 
> The second chapter is on its way. I intend to have it finished by Christmas, but, as with the majority of things in my live, it'll all depend on the whims of that fickle creature called 'My Health'. 
> 
> I do not own any of the characters, except maybe the blue tit.
> 
> This story is a Christmas present for BlueAlmond.  
> To the power of stories changing societies very much in need of a change.
> 
> Merry Christmas to you all.

Albus Dumbledore woke up to a sharp… something pecking his nose. “Fawkes”, he grumbled sleepily, not even bothering to open his eyes. “Get off, you bloody bird”.  
The pecking continued. He waved his hand lazily in front of his face, and hit something soft and small, far too small to be his majestic phoenix. He opened his eyes and looked straight in the beady eyes of a blue tit, who was pecking away merrily at his crooked nose. He heard of snort of laughter behind him.  
He should have known.

“What’s the meaning of this, Professor Grindelwald?” “Practice”, an amused voice replied. “I’m the Transfiguration teacher, so I need to practice Transfiguration.”  
“And pray tell me, why does this practice have to be taken out on me?”  
“Because you, _mein Liebling_ , are the Defence Against the Darks Arts teacher, so you need to keep practicing defending yourself against the Dark Arts."  
Each of those last six words was punctuated by a playful peck from the blue tit.  
Albus snorted. “You being the Dark Arts I should be guarding against?”  
“Very much so. You have to admit your defence is severely lacking.”  
“I think”, Albus said, finally sitting up straight and turning towards Gellert, “you’ll find my defence is excellent as it is.”  
Before Gellert could utter another word, Albus had crawled over him and put his hands on the headboard, on either side of Gellert’s head. He smashed his lips against Gellert’s, and started snogging his lover senseless.  
The blue tit fainted.

“Well,” Gellert panted when Albus finally let go of him. “I may want to reconsider what I said about lacking defences.”Albus smirked smugly and went to sit next to Gellert on the bed, his back against the headboard, his legs outstretched, his right thigh just touching Gellert’s.  
“Your little henchman seems to think so as well.” Albus pulled the unconscious tit from between the sheets. “Rather a faint-hearted assistant for your…” He paused. Looking closily he could see the bird’s feathers were covered in writing.  
“Gellert,” he said ominously. “What exactly was this before you transfigured it into a blue tit?”  
Now it was Gellert’s turn to smirk. “It might have been an piece of paper that was lingering on top of that pile over there.” He nodded towards Albus’s desk. Albus jumped out of bed.  
“Those are students’ essays!” he exclaimed. He hurried over to his desk and started rummaging through the papers.  
“And of all copies you could choose, you had to take MacMillan’s? That boy is worthless at Defence as it is. How I am going to explain this to him? ’Sorry, lad, but Professor Grindelwald, my lover, had to transform your essay into a blue tit just to poke fun at me while I was fast asleep after a night of wonderful sex?’”  
“You could,” Gellert answered slyly. “It’s not illegal anymore.”  
Albus looked over at Gellert, who was staring pointedly at him. He focused his eyes on the essays again. “You know we can’t,” he said softly. “We just can’t.”  
Gellert huffed. “You don’t want to. That’s not the same.”  
“Listen!” Albus’s voice grew louder. “We’ve discussed this before. Yes, _in theory_ , it’s not illegal to have a relationship with you because all bans on same-sex relationships have been lifted as of 1 July, and _in theory,_ no one is allowed discriminate against people like you and me anymore. I know. But this is Hogwarts. We’re teachers. You know how people are. What do you think Dippet will do when he starts receiving complaints from worried parents? Oh, they’re all so very open-minded, thank you very much, as long as their precious offspring doesn’t come into contact with those filthy fairies.”  
His voice broke and tears of indignation and hurt started to gather in his eyes. Gellert came over and put his arms around him. Albus looked up at him and blurted out: ”I love you, Gellert, by Merlin, you know I do, but I love teaching as well, I love my students, I love this castle, and the thought of losing all that because of some bigoted fools…”  
Gellert hushed him and led him over to the bed. He pulled Albus under the covers besides him and moved his hand in soothing strokes across the other man’s chest. They stayed silent for a long time.

Finally, Gellert whistled and the blue tit came flying over from the window sill, settled on top of Albus’s head and started nesting in his auburn hair. Irritated, Albus tried to brush the bird away, but it clung obstinately to his head. Gellert smiled fondly at the creature.  
“I think I’ll keep him. He renders you deliciously helpless.” He pressed a kiss to Albus’s hand. “Might come in handy during our duel.”  
Albus groaned. On the long list of horrible mistakes he’d made in his life, agreeing to duel with Gellert Grindelwald in the Great Hall on Christmas Eve in front of the whole school definitely stood in the top three.

About three weeks ago, he’d been quietly enjoying his breakfast when suddenly Addison Weasley and Henric Longbottom, two Gryffindors, stood in front of him.  
“Professor, could we by any chance persuade you to engage in a Christmas duel with Professor Grindelwald?” Weasley asked in an overly bombastic manner.  
Albus was slightly taken aback by this bizarre question, but he decided to play along.  
“Well, Mr Weasley, you’ll find that your chances very much depend on your forthcoming explanation as to why I should want to be persuaded to partake in such a reckless endeavour.”  
“Because you’re greatest, most talented, most gifted wizard in the world, Professor. You’d crush Professor Grindelwald – with all due respect to Professor Grindelwald, Sir.”  
“And because, if you refuse, we’ll have to make Yaxley’s and Goyle’s Transfiguration and DADA homework till the end of the year.” Longbottom muttered. “Due to this git’s habit of making outrageous bets he can’t possibly win under the influence of Firewhiskey”.  
Albus ignored Longbottom’s comment and let his eyes wander to the other end of the table, where Gellert was sitting. Gellert had just poured himself a cup of tea and lifted his cup in greeting to Albus, a mocking smile playing around his lips.  
“Mr Weasley, how can I be certain you didn’t use the exact same arguments when trying to coax Professor Grindelwald into this duelling affair of yours?”  
“I would not, Professor. Never!” Weasley exclaimed indignantly.  
“He didn’t need to”, Longbottom cut in. “Professor Grindelwald agreed at once.”  
“Why I am not surprised…” Albus answered vaguely, his eyes still on Gellert, whose lips curled most sensuously around the tea cup in hands. “At all?”  
_’Afraid, dear?’_ Gellert’s voice crept into his head.  
_’Of you? You wish. And, Gellert, please stop snogging your tea cup. You’re upsetting at least half of the female students and – if I’m not mistaken - some male ones as well.’  
'_ _Not only the students, surely.’_ Once again, Gellert let his tongue glide up and down the porcelain.  
Albus quickly focussed on the two Gryffindors in front of him, who had followed his eyes to the other end of the table.  
“Well, you can inform Professor Grindelwald I’ll be more than happy to take up the gauntlet. If he hasn’t lost his nerve, already, that is.”  
“Brilliant. Thank you, professor!”  
Both boys sprinted to the other end of table to break the news to Gellert, who had the decency to put his cup down and tried very hard to look surprised. Then they dashed off into the Great Hall to tell everyone who wanted to listen that they’d managed to organise the duel of the century.  
Gellert cast one last meaningful look at Albus, while he picked up some bread crumb from his plate and licked them slowly, very slowly from the tip of his fingers.

Those same fingers were now caressing the blue tit on top of Albus’s head, and Gellert laughed when he heard Albus groan.  
“Not looking forward to it, my dear? Nor would I, if I were you. The prospect of a certain defeat must be rather off-putting.”  
“You know you could never beat me. Not in a fair game. Which reminds me Gellert, we ought to have a chat about rules and fairplay, don’t you think?”  
Now it was Gellert’s turn to groan.  
“Rule number one”, Albus started out. “No wandless or wordless spells. This duel is held in an educational context, so the students should be given the opportunity to study every movement we make, every spell we cast so as to better their understanding of duelling.”  
“They want to see a fight, Al. That’s all there is to it.”  
“Rule number two”, Albus continued, ignoring Gellert. “No dark magic. I repeat. No dark magic, _whatsoever_.”  
He looked Gellert straight into the eyes and the latter remained silent. He knew how much effort it had cost Albus to convince Dippet Gellert could be trusted. He knew how some parents and colleagues were still watching his every move, on the lookout for the flimsiest excuse to send him to Azbakan. And Albus along with him, if they could.  
“Rule number three. Nothing lewd, lecherous or lascivious.”  
Gellert’s face fell.  
“You will not try to distract me with any sexual innuendos, that risk to expose our relationship. First of all, that means that at the end of our duel I’ll have the same amount of clothes on me as at the beginning.”  
Gellert chuckled. His hand wandered towards Albus’s chest and started stroking him through the fabric of his nightshirt.  
“Don’t worry, _Liebe_ , I’m not inclined to share you with anyone else.”  
“And the same applies to you,” Albus added hastily, trying to ignore the sparks of heat flaming up under Gellerts’ fingers. “You’re not going to strip, not even partially, in front of an audience just to sidetrack me.”  
Gellert pouted. “You’re no fun.”  
“I am fun,”Albus retorted. “But you are going to play fair.”  
“I’m the head of Slytherin,” Gellert whined. “I can’t be expected to play fair. My students won’t respect me anymore.”  
A sly smile spread across his face. “Besides, what are you going to do if I don’t follow your rules?,” he whispered, his fingers fumbling with the top buttons of Albus’s nightgown.  
“I’ll go on a sex strike for the entire two weeks of the Christmas holiday,” Albus deadpanned.Gellert’s mouth fell open in shock.  
“You… you… that’s really below the belt, Albus.”  
Albus smiled. “You’ll find it isn’t, Gellert. That’s the whole point.”  
Gellert groaned and buried his face in Albus’s chest. “We might as well cancel the bloody thing. Guess you don’t want me to use our Legillimency bond either?”  
“Actually, I was hoping you would. Otherwise, the duel will indeed be rather tedious.”  
Gellert looked up at him. “Any restrictions there?”  
“None at all, dear. As they say _’Die Gedanken sind frei’_.”  
Albus’s eyes twinkled and Gellert grinned. The blue tit chirped merrily.  
“Oh, I’m sure I will be able to come up with some rather interesting lines of thinking. But first, there are some physical lines of enquiry that need to be pursued.”  
Gellert dived beneath the covers. All of a sudden Albus felt two large hands roughly pushing up his nightgown and a tongue started licking away furiously at his inner thighs.  
“Gellert… what are – ah – you doing? We… we’ve got… only” – he cast a wandless Tempus – “forty-five minutes – hmm – before classes. We need to get dressed… and breakfast…”  
“I know”, came a low voice from under the covers. “But I heard rumours about an impending sex strike, and I want to make the most of this while I still can.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'Die Gedanken sind frei' = 'Thoughts are free'


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there!
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed or at least survived Christmas.
> 
> Health did get in my way, so I wasn't able to finish the story before Christmas, as I intended to do. My apologies.  
> I'm currently also fighting my very own duel against AO3's CCS, trying to make lay-out match the image I have in my head. I'm afraid that, unlike our dear professors, CCS and I are not equally matched. So, it might take a while till the lay-out is a) pleasant and b) consistent over the different chapters. Again, my apologies.  
> For this chapter, I opted to leave out the cursive for thoughts and just indicate those by single quotes, as opposed to actual speech in double quotes.
> 
> But there's good news as well!  
> Firstly, heaven has sent me an angel, called IhaveAbadfeelingAboutThis. In the midst of the Christmas festivities, this seraphic creature was willing to beta this chapter for me. I couldn't have wished me a better Christmas present. (Any lingering mistakes are entirely mine, of course.)  
> Secondly, the number of chapters will be extended from two to three, as the duelling took far more time, space and words than I expected. So, for those interested, there's more to come…

”Dear students, dear colleagues, ladies and gentlemen. It’s my privilege to welcome you to the most impressive festive event this school has ever hosted during my time as headmaster: a proper Christmas duel.”

It was Christmas Eve. Dinner in the Great Hall had just been finished and all the tables had been moved aside to make room for a raised platform of four by twelve metres.

Albus was standing at one end of the platform, Gellert at the other. In the middle stood Armando Dippet, giving an introductory speech to the hundreds of students who looked up expectantly at him and the two duellists.

Albus had silently hoped there wouldn’t be that much of audience, as most students went home for the Christmas holidays. Well, they usually did. This year, however, each and every student had postponed their journey home till Christmas Day itself, writing to their parents that – yes – celebrating with family is very important, and – no – nothing can quite replace Uncle Jonathan’s Christmas pranks and – yes – Aunt Jo perhaps won’t make it to next Christmas with all the tumours and stuff, but they could not and would not miss ’The Duel of the Century’.

Unfortunately for Albus, who deemed such responses totally irresponsible, most parents had agreed with their kids.

It hadn’t stopped there. After word got out, Dippet had been buried in owls with letters from former students begging him to allow them to attend the duel, some even offering donations to the school. Dippet had rejected every single request, for which Albus felt immensely grateful.

He still wasn’t sure Gellert would actually behave, and if anything did happen, it would be easier to cover it up intramurally. As far as anything concerning Gellert Grindelwald could ever be covered up. That man was drawing attention to himself by simply walking through the corridors. If one of Albus’s sixth years was to be believed, he even had a secret fan club, called ’Gellert’s Girls’. Albus didn’t think Gellert knew about the existence of such a society, and he saw absolutely no reason to tell him. The last thing Gellert’s ego needed was more inflating.

”Now, I would like to remind you,” Dippet continued, ”that this Christmas duel, however inspiring it may turn out to be, does not change anything about the school’s duelling policy. That means that if I or any member of the staff catches any of you ’practicing duelling techniques’ without explicit permission, you’ll find yourself duelling with the stains on the spare potions cauldrons every weekend for the rest of term. Is that understood?”

The crowd in front of Dippet mumbled something he chose to interpret as ’yes’.

Meanwhile, Albus was glowering murderously at Gellert. Gellert was wearing bespoke black trousers, a beautiful emerald green silk shirt and a black vest with intricate silver patterns stitched on the lapels and at the sides. Every piece of clothing was utterly elegant – and extremely tight-fitting. The dark fabric of the trousers embracing Gellert’s muscled thighs, the silk hugging his chest so tightly his pectorals and abdominals all but stood out.

How Gellert managed to move, let alone duel, in such clothes was a mystery to Albus. How he himself would be able to do anything sensible with temptation incarnate smirking in front of him, was an even bigger mystery. Implement an ’all-clothes-stay-on’ policy and you could count on Gellert Grindelwald to wear exactly those clothes you’d want rip off him the moment he entered your vision.

’Ah ah, Rule Number Three, mein Schatz.’ said Gellert’s sing-song voice in his head, ’No touchy.’ Albus gritted his teeth.

Dippet must have picked up on the tension emanating from the two men, because he quickly continued: ”Well, onto the duel itself, then. I don’t need to introduce the duellists – you all know Professor Dumbledore and Professor Grindelwald – but I should say a few words about rules and regulations. I’m sure both duellists will be giving their best performance tonight, but as this is a recreational duel, the aim is not to kill or maim one’s opponent, simply to overpower and disarm him. We don’t want to lose either of these excellent teachers, do we?”

He cast a nervous glance at Albus, but he had gone pale and didn’t seem to notice Dippet.

’Gellert, where’s our blood pact? You didn’t bring it with you, did you?’

’No worries. I left it safely in my quarters. After all, I couldn’t be sure you’d stick to your own rules and not magic my shirt away. By the look of you, I was quite right…’

’Oh, shut up.’

Dippet cleared his throat: ”Do we?” Both Albus and Gellert stopped staring at each other, and looked at the headmaster.

”No, Sir, of course not,” Albus replied.

”Sir, my life would be empty without the honourable Professor Dumbledore in it. Rest assured he’ll come to no harm,” Gellert declared.

The students giggled. Albus looked furious.

”Well, gentlemen. Give me a moment to return to my seat at the High Table. From there, I’ll count down from three and then you may start.”

The entire hall watched as the headmaster shuffled back to the High Table, which had been raised so the staff could watch the duel above the heads of the students, and resumed his seat.

Albus glared back at Gellert.

’Gellert Grindelwald, what did I say…’ – THREE – ’about exposing our relationship?’

’I heard you… but these rules were in only force…’ – TWO – ’during our duel, which starts’ – ONE – ’now.’

Albus shot a vicious Stupify at Gellert, who blocked it almost perfunctorily.

’Anger issues, my dear? Your rules, yes… well, as I’m not allowed to open my Christmas present, I might as well wrap it up.’ ”Incarcerous!”

A burgundy garland jumped off one of the Christmas trees and shot towards Albus, trying to twist itself around his wrists. He dismissed it with a derisive flick of his wand.

’ You call that wrapping up? This is what a proper wrapping looks like.’ ”Velatus!”

A tablecloth came whirling through the air, ready to straightjacket the blonde wizard. Gellert transfigured the cloth into a napkin.

’Oh, are we prickly today.’ A holly wreath tried to lowered itself on Albus’ hair. ’Talking about prick-ly. Fancy this, later tonight?’ A rather distracting image slithered its way into Albus’ head: a gloriously naked Gellert kneeling in front of him, slowly taking his cock into…

Albus growled silently. ’Time you cooled off.’ A flight of snowballs whizzed through the open door of the Great Hall and hurled itself at Gellert. Gellert flicked his wand and the students roared with laughter. The snowballs were transformed into a snowman, complete with hat, coal eyes, coal smile, carrot nose and… carrot dick.

Albus stood perplexed as the snowman started bouncing towards him, every bounce causing the carrots to…

’Gellert, what on earth are – you – DOING?’

’Well, couldn’t place two carrots in his face, could I?’

’There were never meant to be TWO carrots.’

The carrots broke free from the snowman and propelled themselves at Gellert. He ducked his head.

’And that was not suggestive at all, dear. Spearing your opponent with a carrot dick.’

’You, Professor Grindelwald,’ Albus muttered inwardly ’are skating on very, very thin ice.’ The ground under Gellert’s feet turned into ice and he nearly tripped.

’Think you will be able to stand your ground?’ Suddenly, Albus found himself wobbling, trying to keep his balance on two ice skates.

’Oh, are we feeling high and mighty?’ Gellert shot up in the air, precariously teetering on one metre high stilts.

’You know, dear, from up here I can see how absolutely shitty your situation is looking right now.’ ”Adjuvantibus avibus!”

The blue Christmas baubles on a tree standing nearby turned into a flock of blue tits that flew over Albus and shat on his head. Everybody laughed, well, except Albus.

’That was gross, Gellert.’ Albus said indignantly, while he wiped himself clean with a flick of his wand.

’I know. But it wasn’t lewd, lecherous or lascivious – and therefore perfectly allowed. Besides, I told you I’ve developed a soft spot for blue tits.’

’This is getting rather boring, isn’t it?’ Gellert remarked as he made another set of spires levitate from the top of the Christmas trees and fired them at Albus. For the past thirty minutes, they’d both used all the available Christmas decorations in the Great Hall in an attempt to find a breach in the other’s defence – and they’d both failed. Not to either’s surprise. They were unnervingly equally matched, but also equally conditioned to hold back in public, always wary of scaring people off with the sheer power of their magic.

’Don’t you think it time to turn things up a notch?’ Gellert continued, lazily splintering the stream of Christmas baubles whizzing his way.

’No, Gel, they’ll be frightened, intimidated and…’

’Albus Dumbledore, will you cut the pretence? Why do you think they asked you in the first place? For your good looks?’ Gellert sneered.

Albus’ face fell. The floating candles in the Great Hall that were hovering above Gellert started dripping lukewarm wax on him, in heavy, tear-shaped drops.

To the onlookers Gellert must have seemed perfectly unmoved, but Albus saw a hint of shame and regret flicker in his eyes.

’Don’t cry, _meine Liebe_ , you are very handsome, you know that. But they chose you because they know you’re an incredibly powerful wizard. Speaking of which, why do you think they asked me to be your opponent?’

Albus smirked and let the dripping wax gather at Gellert’s feet, gluing him to the spot. ’Definitely for your good looks. And because they think I can’t stand you.’

’I don’t know about that’, Gellert mused, absent-mindedly transforming Albus’ boots into skis to get even with him. ’But I think they want to see power. Your power. My power. They want to see what magic is capable of in the most skilled of hands, the most gifted of minds, fully aware they might never attain it themselves. They want us to show off.’

’Well, in that case, you’d better brace yourself.’ Albus eyes gleamed dangerously.

’My pleasure.’

In the blink of an eye, both wizards slid their wands in their sleeves and vanished. The entire audience, students and staff alike, gasped. On the stage there had appeared a majestic Bengali tiger and a lithe snow leopard. They stared each other down, menacingly, and then started moving, slowly, walking in circles, never breaking eye-contact, their teeth bared.

’Now, that’s more like it…’ Gellert’s voice purred.

’They definitely didn’t see that coming’ Albus chuckled. It sounded like a low growl.

’Have I ever told you how incredibly hot you look as a tiger? Your stripes, your tail, your muscular thighs. How come we never had roleplay in Animagus form. We’ll have to make up for that.’

Albus growled louder and playfully smacked Gellert across the head with his left paw.

”Gentlemen!’ Dippet cried. Both the tiger and the snow leopard looked up at him. The headmaster stood upright in his seat, his face as white as a sheet. Apparently, Albus’ smack hadn’t come across as playful to the audience. Dippet must’ve thought Albus had wanted to kill Gellert, if his shocked expression was anything to go by. Albus smiled apologetically at Dippet, thereby fully baring his teeth. Dippet’s hands started to tremble around his wand.

’Not helping, dear,’ Gellert laughed. ’Let’s change back, before they lock us both in a cage.’

They returned to their human form, and, wand in hand, immediately fired a spell at each other, neither of them wanting the other to use the change-back to their advantage.

A blazing red fire shot out of Albus’ wand, while dazzling ice-blue flames blasted out of Gellert’s.

On instinct, they countered the spell immediately, both shouting ”Expecto Patronum”. A giant silvery phoenix spread its wings and hovered in front of Albus, protecting him from the blue blaze, while a colossal silvery dragon curled itself round Gellert, shielding him from the red inferno. Everybody in the Great Hall was gazing up at the patronuses, in awe, amazement, even slight terror. Nobody noticed how, for the first time that evening, both duellists were baffled, unable to move, to speak, to do anything other than stare at each other. Nobody knew - nobody would ever know - that the phoenix and the dragon, who were clawing and hissing viciously at each other, had been cast by virtue of the exact same memory. A memory so happy, so powerful, so identical, that it had involuntarily reverberated through the bond and continued to vibrate in Albus’ and Gellert bodies, in their minds, in their souls.

’I never knew that night meant as much to you as it did to me.’ Albus whispered.

’You know now,’ Gellert replied, softly. Their patronuses started to fade away. ’And I’m more than happy to sign up for a repeat performance, once I’ve won this duel’.

’Once you’ve won?! Hold your horses, Professor Grindelwald!’ ”Impetus equorum!”

Six dining tables, neatly set aside, transformed into horses, lept onto the stage and bolted towards Gellert.

”Divide terram!” The wooden stage and part of the floor split open, forming a deep ravine. Students close to the stage cried out and jumped backwards. Unable to stop, the horses hurled themselves into the newly-created ravine, that closed immediately after them.

’Where did you send them?’ Albus wondered.

’To some meadow close to the Forbidden Forest. I’ll fetch them later. Could’ve dropped them off at your brother’s, but I didn’t think he’d appreciate it. Has enough on its plate already, with his hallucinating brother…’

’Hallucinating brother? What do you mean? Gellert? Gellert?!’

The bond was closed off.

Albus heard a voice shout ”Multiplicatus ad confusionem!”

And then another one, to his right: ”Professor Dumbledore!” And another one, to his left ”You seem…” ”Confused” came a voice from behind him. He spinned around. Four Gellert’s were staring at him, grinning widely. Albus knew he had to stay focused. The Gellerts started around circling around him. Focus. He had to focus. All four Gellerts lifted their wands and shouted: ”Expelliarmus!”

Albus’ wand shot out of his hand and landed in the outstretched right-hand of the Gellert standing to his left side. One moment, the Great Hall was completely silent. Then, the students burst out into a wild shouting and clapping.

At the same time, Albus felt a familiar wandless magic curl up around his legs, and heard Gellert’s voice laughing softly in his head, the bond now perfectly open, thank you very much. He stumbled, and Gellert’s magic pushed him all the way down, till he lay stretched out on the floor, leaning backwards on his elbows. Albus rolled his eyes at Gellert, who had climbed back on the stage.

’You just can’t resist it, can you. All these theatrics. And what did I say about wandless magic?’

’I defeated you, dear. I set the rules. Try to look a little more beaten, will you?’

”Professor Dumbledore”, Gellert bellowed, ”Do you surrender?”

’To you, Gellert? Always.’

’That’s very kind, sweetheart, but I need you to say it out loud.’

Albus sighed dramatically: ”Yes, Professor Grindelwald. Yes, I do surrender.”

’Oh, darling, I’d love to hear you say that again. Perhaps tonight, with your hands tied above your head, my cock slipping into…’

’Shut up!’ Albus glared pointedly at Gellert.

”Thank you, professor Dumbledore. That’s very noble of you. Not that you’ve got much choice.” He looked down on Albus and the hall sniggered.

”But I’m not spiteful. Let me reach out a hand to you,” Gellert added. He took Albus’ right hand and pulled him upright. Albus felt his whole body tingling, and he quickly released Gellert’s hand. He busied himself with brushing the dust off his trousers, while Gellert turned to the audience and delivered his victory speech.

”Dear headmaster, dear colleagues, dear students. Thank you all for being here tonight. A duel is fought between two, but the atmosphere in which a duel takes place is contributed to by every spectator. Through his cheering on, through his attention, even through his silence. I want to thank those who’ve supported me” – the Slytherins whooped and screamed – ”and forgive those who were too blinded by Professor Dumbledore’s good looks to see he didn’t stand a chance against me. Neither they nor their grades will suffer for it.”

Albus knew he should look offended, but he couldn’t keep an amused smile from his face. Oh, Gellert knew how to work a crowd, no doubt about that. His choice of words, his intonation, the way he glided across the stage, every gesture, every figure of speech measured out perfectly to achieve the exact effect he was looking for, the audience turning to wax in his hands.

”As you know, it is customary for the winner of a duel to ask a favour of the defeated. In theory, that favour can be anything and everything, but don’t worry: I won’t burden our beloved Defence Against the Dark Professor with too many wearisome tasks, although I might have him revising your Transfiguration papers for the rest of term.”

The students laughed.

”In fact, what I want ask from Professor Dumbledore, can hardly be considered a burden at all. It’s small, tiny, scarcely worth noticing, gone in the blink of an eye.” Gellert paused. ”But it’s dangerous.”

At once, the Great Hall went completely quiet.

Albus froze. He didn’t know what Gellert was playing at, but he knew it wasn’t going to end well. He tried to reach out to him via the bond, but he was met with rock-hard occlumentic shields. Gellert had shut him out, and as long as Albus didn’t know what Gellert had planned, he couldn’t intervene without the risk of inadvertently making things even worse. He could only stand there and wait.

Gellert continued: ”And worse than dangerous. Up until a few months ago, it was highly illegal. If Professor Dumbledore had given me then what I’m going to ask from him now, he would have been removed from his post as a teacher. He could even have been sent to Azkaban.”

Everyone seemed to be holding their breath.

”Due to a recent amendment to the law, I am now at liberty to ask him this question, to ask from him this favour, although I’ll grant him the right to refuse my request.”

Gellert turned to Albus, and looked him straight into the eyes. A few seconds passed.

”Albus Dumbledore, will you kiss me?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's the final chapter!  
> Thanks to anyone who left a comment on the previous chapters. I may not have replied to all of them, as I put all my energy into writing this final chapter, but I have read every single one and they really make my day.  
> Thanks again to the wonderful IhaveAbadfeelingAboutThis, who neatly combed the worst Dunglish out of this text. They really should get a medal.
> 
> I haven't planned on writing any other fics yet, but if you'd love to see more of GGAD bickering and bantering, write a prompt in the comments and I'll see what I can do. (Don't promise anything though.)

_Gellert turned to Albus, and looked him straight into the eyes. A few seconds passed._

_”Albus Dumbledore, will you kiss me?”_

Albus’ senses short-circuited.

His body went numb. His legs, his arms - they didn’t feel connected to his body anymore. The world had turned into a blur, the surrounding sounds dim and distorted, as if he was being held under water - and he didn’t know if he would ever be able to break through the surface again.

The only thing he heard was the merciless pounding of his heart in his ears. The only thing he felt - that heart, in his chest, in his throat, strangling him, trying to rip him apart, trying to flee from this, this execution, this nightmare.

The only thing he saw - Gellert.

’What are you doing, Gellert?’ Albus listened to the voice in his head as if it belonged to a stranger. He didn’t even know if he was asking the question to himself, or to Gellert.

But Gellert answered straight away: ’Creating an opportunity, Albus.’

’But I told you I wasn’t ready,’ Albus felt anger flaming up. He clenched his fists. The pain, the fear, the tightness in his chest. It was simply too much, and he shouted through the bond: ’I told you, Gellert! I told you I wasn’t ready! I told you!’

’You’d never be ready.’

Albus was taken aback, not by the words, but by the tone in which Gellert had spoken them. He didn’t sound sneering, or angry, as Albus had expected. He sounded resigned and tired. So very tired.

All of a sudden, it hit Albus that the secrecy enwrapping their relationship had been taking its toll on Gellert. Gellert had never been one to hide in the shadows, never been one to lie about what he believed in. Yet, he had done exactly that to be with Albus, to keep him happy, while he himself - for all his flamboyancy, all his swagger - must have been slowly suffocating.

Albus realised that, had it not been for him, Gellert would have made his proclivity for men public a long time ago, even before the ban on homosexuality and same-sex relationships had been lifted. Gellert had stayed silent, not wanting his personal revelation to give root to any conjecture about who he might fancy, any conjecture that might compromise Albus.

Then, six months ago, the day had come where they – at last – were officially allowed to be free, free to be who they wanted to be and with whom they wanted to be. And Gellert, who’d never in his life cared to ask permission for anything, had asked Albus if they’d seize the moment and step out in the open. Albus remembered what he’d replied. It wasn’t hard to remember, because he’d given the same answer over and over again. The exact wording and the arguments had varied, but it always boiled down to this: I’m not ready.

Gellert was right. He’d never be ready.

Albus vaguely noticed that he’d started moving towards Gellert, his legs acting of their own accord. He didn’t know what he would do once he got to him. Kiss him? Slap him? Laugh in his face? He did know that, whatever choice he made, nothing would be the same after tonight. Of course, he could simply laugh off Gellert’s request, and Gellert surely would play along by putting up a mocking smile, dismissing the mere hint of any romantic involvement between them as ridiculous, leaving nobody in the Great Hall any the wiser. But Albus didn’t need telling that, from that moment on, things between them would change.

He was still walking, getting closer and closer to Geller, and he still had no idea what to do. He knew he was bound to lose something tonight, and he was terrified he’d only find out what he couldn’t afford to lose once he’d lost it.

’I’m so afraid, Gellert. What if they kick us out?’ he whispered.

’Then we’ll sort it out together, _meine Liebe_ , I promise.’

Albus was now standing at less than a meter from the blonde wizard, who’d enchanted him with his long locks, his boisterous eyes, his blazing intelligence and his saucy smile, that fateful summer in 1899. Gellert Grindelwald. The only man who’d ever been his equal, his lover, his life.

’Whatever happens, will you stay with me?’ Albus felt ashamed at how childish that sounded, how insecure, how needy. He took another step forward and another, looking Gellert pleadingly in the eyes, until he stood right in front of him.

’Until the very end, Albus,’ Gellert answered solemnly, ’And beyond.’

Albus couldn’t bear to look at those mismatched eyes any longer, couldn’t bear to see the affection radiating from them beneath his carefully schooled features. He was still terrified that the outcome of this evening would snatch away that affection for good. He couldn’t look around him either, at his students, his colleagues, who liked him, who admired him, knowing that he would probably lose all of that too in just a few seconds time.

So he looked at his hands. How they wandered upwards, stroked Gellert’s cheeks softly, cupped his face and pulled him slightly forward, while he himself leaned in. He let their lips brush against each other, then pressed more firmly. Closed his eyes.

He felt Gellert’s arms encircle his waist, pulling him closer. He returned Albus’ kiss gently, almost chastely, so entirely different from when they were alone. But kissing they were, unmistakably and indisputably, in front of the hundreds of students, in front of their colleagues, in front of headmaster Dippet.

And there, standing on that platform, locked in the embrace of the man he loved more than anything else, Albus realised Gellert had been right. Hiding, concealing and dissembling, it all had been weighing down Albus too, more than he’d ever realised. They couldn’t have gone on like that. Whatever the future was going to bring – was about to bring – Albus was willing to face it, if it meant he could openly and freely love the man who was more dear to him than his own life. He’d face it all – in a few seconds.

Just for now, he kept his eyes closed, relishing in the warmth of Gellert’s embrace, of their kiss, of that glorious moment where he felt like they could take on the world. Just one more moment, and then he would look up, at his students, his colleagues and see how much of that world had shattered beyond repair.

He didn’t have to wait that long.

After about fifteen seconds of unworldly silence, the students in the hall started clapping. Albus felt Gellert smile against his lips. The applause grew louder, and he heard students cheering and whooping, some crying, ”I knew it! I knew it!” He lowered his hands, softly broke the kiss, and he opened eyes. He was met with two twinkling mismatched eyes, shining brighter than Albus had seen them in a long, long time.

Albus and Gellert turned to the crowd, each with one arm holding the other’s waist. The students started clapping even louder. Some looked a bit bewildered, Albus noticed, and several children from pureblood families were staring at them in downright disgust. But apart from them, he saw only cheerful and smiling faces. Leta Lestrange cheered and whistled, while next to her, Newt Scamander bashfully gave them the thumbs up. The sixth years of Albus’ Defence class made pink heart-shaped confetti sprout from the tip of their wands. Albus felt his eyes become watery.

He looked up at the High Table. Professor Slughorn, the Potions teacher, would clearly need some time to process this unexpected turn of events, but Albus had only eyes for the woman sitting next to him: Minerva McGonagall, the Charms teacher, the most brilliant witch he’d ever encountered, and his best friend. She was grinning from ear to ear, and Albus felt a tear run down his cheeks.

The hall suddenly fell silent, and Albus’ breath hitched. He hadn’t noticed that Dippet had climbed onto the stage. His arm slid down from Gellert’s waist and he gripped Gellert’s left hand tightly.

”Well, well, well,” Dippet said in his slightly creaky voice, ”This certainly has been a most memorable duel, and the outcome solves a tiny problem I have been pondering about for weeks.” Albus’ heart leapt to his throat. Had Dippet known all along? Had he been watching them, waiting patiently for that fatal slip that would give them away, so he could fire them?

”As you all know, it’s tradition that the headmaster dances the first dance on the Yule Ball. Now, my old bones and rheumatic joints haven’t felt particularly delighted by that prospect, and neither have I by the prospect of having to find myself a suitable dance partner.”

The students sniggered.

”Due to recent developments, however, it seems I may have found myself a worthy replacement.” He waved his wand and a red carpet rolled itself out from Albus and Gellert’s feet right to the dance floor.

”Gentlemen, if you would do me the honour…”

For a moment, both professors were dumbfounded. Then, Gellert, ever confident and extravagant, turned to his lover, took Albus’ right hand in his own, bowed gracefully. Together they descended to the dance floor, to the sound of a thunderous applause of both students and staff.

Gellert placed his right arm around Albus’ waist, and held Albus’ right hand in his left. They looked each other in the eyes, the music started to play, and they began to waltz. Gellert guided Albus elegantly and effortlessly across the dance floor. Albus let himself sink into Gellert’s arms, his hands, the fluid movements of his supple body.

’Merlin’s beard, Gellert, I’d forgotten what a magnificent dancer you are.’

’Only with you, darling.’

’Liar,’ Albus replied fondly. He still couldn’t believe his luck. It had all turned out so well. He felt like he was living in a dream. He…

The idea struck Albus like a Doxy claw, and he nearly tripped over his own legs.

’Gellert…,’ Albus’ voice loomed ominously in his partner’s head, ’You haven’t been cheating, have you?’

’You want to know if I’ve Seen this? Mm, I might…’

’Gellert! You put me through all of this, on purpose, without telling me a thing?’

’Steady darling, I didn’t see all of it. I only Saw that we were happy and that we were living together, free and out in the open. I didn’t have the faintest idea about how we’d gotten there. Trust me when I say this evening has been as exciting for me as for you. And now I suggest you start concentrating on our dance again. You’re dancing slightly, but noticeably off the beat. We don’t want the students to get the impression that Professor Dumbledore is a worthless dancer, on top of being a worthless duellist, do we?’

Albus very much wanted to kick Gellert’s shins, but he couldn’t do so without getting even more off the beat. They danced till the final notes of the waltz faded away, turned to the audience and bowed. Everybody clapped their hands, and Albus saw Madam Dandely, the school nurse, dab the corner of her eyes with a handkerchief.

The next song started to play, and more and more couples went onto the dance floor, while Albus and Gellert, still holding each other’s hands, made their way to the High Table to see the headmaster. Dippet was looking down contentedly on them. ”Excellent dancing, gentlemen. My bones, my joints and my two left feet are very grateful to you. In fact, from now on, you may open the ball every year.”

”So we can stay?” Albus blurted out.

Dippet looked sternly at him. ”Of course you can. You don’t think I’d give my two star teachers their marching orders because of this? Yes, there will be some disapproving voices here and there.” His eyes wandered across the hall and rested on the group of Slytherins that had been glaring at Albus and Gellert. ”But I’m afraid no headmaster of Hogwarts has ever been able to appoint a staff member without being reprimanded or chastised by someone.” He sighed and tiredly rubbed a hand across his face. ”At least, tonight has put an end to one of the most longstanding and fiercely debated bets in Hogwarts history. Which reminds me that I have to get hold of Professor Kettleburn. He owes me thirty galleons.”

Albus looked flabbergasted. Gellert grinned. They were about to turn away, when Dippet coughed: ”I haven’t finished yet. There’s still the matter of your accommodation.”

”Accommodation?” Albus repeated, feigning he didn’t understand what Dippet was hinting at, though a slight blush had appeared on his cheeks.

”Gentlemen,” Dippet lowered his voice, ”Despite my blessed age, I’m not naive, nor I am a hypocrite. You are a couple, so I want to offer you lodgings fit for a couple and your current private quarters are a bit on the small side for that. I believe Professor Moonstruck’s old rooms are currently unoccupied. They are spacious and situated close to both the Gryffindor Tower and the dungeons, so you can keep an eye on your respective houses. I’d have to check with Mr Gibbons, but if the chambers really are free, you can move in tonight.”

Dippet chuckled. ”The head of Gryffindor and the head of Slytherin sharing lodgings, and more,” he mused, ”If only Godric and Salazar had lived to see that…”

Albus’ face went as scarlet as a Gryffindor banner. He muttered a quick, ”Thank you, Sir. That’s most kind of you,” and hurried away from the High Table. Gellert followed him, laughing.

’My dear, Albus, so curt towards our considerate and clearly most supportive headmaster,’ Gellert teased. ’I wonder if, back in the days, Dippet has seen his share of secret storage room meetings. He and Kettleburn certainly seem to get on alarmingly well…’

’Gellert Grindelwald! If you don’t shut that wicked mouth of you this very…’

”Oh, sorry Leta.” Albus had been so busy yelling at Gellert in his mind, he hadn’t noticed he’d nearly run into Leta Lestrange, who’d been on her way to the dance floor with Newt Scamander. She beamed at him.

”It’s nothing, Professor. And congratulations, Professor Dumbledore, Professor Grindelwald.”

”Yes, c-congratulations,” Newt stammered, ”You know, w-when you were in your Animagus f-forms, I immediately knew y-you weren’t really f-fighting. You see, the m-mating rituals of big cats…”

”Yes, thank you, Newt,” Leta cut in and she dragged him towards the dance floor, casting an apologetic look at Albus and Gellert.

They sniggered.

”So, Albus Dumbledore, you finally mustered up the Gryffindor courage to come out to the world, although it took none other than the head of Slytherin to get you so far.”

Minerva McGonagall was standing right in front of them, smiling smugly.

”I probably ought to feel vexed that you didn’t trust me enough to tell me outright, Albus, although I’m beginning to wonder if that wasn’t just another of your little schemes, letting me figure it out myself. I mean, it wasn’t as if you didn’t provide a plethora of hints and clues. Two-thirds of my conversations with you were about the wonderful, oh so brilliant, and did I forget to mention utterly charming Professor Grindelwald.”

Gellert chuckled and Albus stared bashfully at the ground.

”And now that I have the honour to talk to that enchanting creature myself… there’s something I wanted to ask you, Professor Grindelwald.”

”Minerva,” Albus replied exasperatedly, ”You can call him Gellert, you know.”

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips. It took a long time before Minerva McGonagall deemed specimens of the human race worthy enough to address them by their first names. Up ‘til now, only Albus had successfully passed the test.

”Very well. Gellert…” She pronounced his name as if she was granting him a privilege that could be revoked at any time, ”It transpires you’re a rather skilful dancer. But I wonder if you could get your feet around a traditional Scottish reel.”

She waved her wand. Gellert looked down. ”Minerva!” he cried out, ”What in the name of Merlin? A tartan skirt! I’m not a girl! What will people think of me?”

”Professor Grindelwald,” Professor McGonagall replied in her sternest teacher voice. (Albus saw a couple of students, though wrapped up entirely in their own conservations, cringe on instinct.) ”Firstly, it’s not a skirt, it’s a kilt, and I won’t tolerate you belittling Scotland’s national dress. Secondly, a kilt is worn by men and men only, so unless you’re refuting to be male, you look perfectly respectable. Thirdly, the only person in the entire universe whose opinion you care about, doesn’t seem to mind at all. Does he, Albus?”

Albus was practically drooling at the sight of Gellert wearing a kilt.

”So, as all your objections are hereby nullified, I see no reason for you to not dance a reel with me. After you.”

Gellert stamped off to the dance floor, muttering something under his breath.

”I promise I’ll return him to you, Albus,” Minerva shouted, while she went after Gellert, ”With the kilt.”

Albus laughed. He turned around to fetch himself a drink, when he saw Addison Weasley and Henric Longbottom ploughing their way through the crowd towards him.

”Professor Dumbledore, That was brilliant! The fire, the patronus, the animagus… Simply brilliant!” Addison Weasley exclaimed when they’d finally reached him.

”It was,” Henric Longbottom concurred, ”Shame you lost though, Professor.”

Albus smiled, his bright blue eyes twinkling. ”On the contrary, boys,” he said, as he watched Gellert desperately trying to out-dance Professor McGonagall, ”I’ve never been more happy to lose.”

**Author's Note:**

> 'Die Gedanken sind frei' = 'Thoughts are free'


End file.
